A Taste of ROWE: The “No Interruptions” Experiment

One of the big complaints we hear from working people is that they’re constantly dealing with constant interruptions. Like, constantly.

It never lets up, does it? If it’s not the “emergency” meeting, then it’s the daily fire drill or the coworker or manager who stops by your cube for “just a quick question.”

As the saying goes, “This should only take a moment.”

So here’s an idea to bring to your boss (or try yourself if you’re a manager) that will give you a taste of what life can be like in a Results-Only Work Environment. It’s an experiment called No Interruptions.

But first, some background.

In a ROWE, people aren’t always physically present. They also may not be instantly available to respond to your every whim. In a ROWE, people may NOT WORK FOR AN ENTIRE AFTERNOON to do what needs to get done.

Not having everyone be instantly available may sound like a recipe for disaster, but workers in a ROWE aren’t addicted to availability like they are in a traditional work environment.

That’s because a ROWE fosters natural teamwork and cross-training. Coworkers cover for each other seamlessly. Also, people plan ahead more. If we know we need XYZ from you by noon on Wednesday, then we’re not going to wait until that morning to ask for it. We respect your time and expect you to respect ours.

Now back to No Interruptions.

In this game (and if it’s easier to sell it to your people or to management as a game, then go ahead and call it that), you pick one person on the team to be “it.”

That person then picks an afternoon the following week when they will work WITHOUT INTERRUPTIONS for the afternoon.

This “no interruptions” rule is absolute. They are not to be bothered. Furthermore, they can pick ANY DAY THEY WANT. No hiding this challenge in a slow time.

The rest of the team’s job is to protect that person’s time and space. If an issue comes up that this person would normally handle, then other people have to step up and cover for them. If there is some piece of information that you know you’ll need from that person, then you’ll have to get it ahead of time.

The person who is “it” is, of course, still obligated to do their job. They cannot use their protected time to blow off deadlines or not make their deliverables.

But they get to choose what to do with that afternoon. Most important of all, they’ll get a taste of what it’s like to control their time and their workflow, which are two vital parts of ROWE.

So what happens when you play this game?

The first thing people will notice is that having someone walled off for a day isn’t that different than most days. It’s not that people are expendable, but more that on a typical day, people are out of commission because of illness, family emergencies, meetings, retreats, business trips, etc. The people who are not “it” are already accustomed to adapting to temporary absence. (If they’re not, then that’s a deeper, more serious problem.)

The second thing people notice is that having planned for a lack of availability makes their own job go much more smoothly. It’s just like when you do a big trip to the supermarket and take care of two weeks’ worth of shopping instead of flying by the seat of your pants. You think that being prepared takes all this extra work, but it’s really “convenience” that sucks the life out of you.

The final thing that people notice will only be noticed by the person who is “it.” At first, that person will feel weird because they’ll be able to concentrate for a big stretch of time. (They may even notice how woefully out of practice they are.) Then they’ll discover that having control over their time is pretty great. They may or may not move mountains, but at the very least, they’ll be productive.

The aftermath of this experiment is, perhaps, the most important part. The person who was “it” will likely be protective of the experience. If they say it was great, then people will get jealous.

Similarly, the people who weren’t “it” might make jokes about special treatment.

The manager in this scenario has to make sure the culture of the workplace doesn’t undermine the experiment. Keep the conversation positive. Focus on results. Then give someone else a chance to be “it.”

This experiment is adapted from one of the exercises we use when we migrate companies from a traditional work environment into a ROWE. In our experience, it opens a lot of eyes. Give a try and let us know how it goes.

Posted in Effective management